BIRTHDAY!!!! Almost

Okay, so it is not actually my birthday yet, but tonight we're going out to celebrate and I am super excited because everyone is going to be there - Britt, Teetz, Drake, Kayleen, JohnRoss, Bailie, the list goes on and on. Silas and Mike might even be coming down, though it is not confirmed, as Silas has something for work to do tomorrow, but we will see. He hasn't missed the last two birthdays, so he said he would definitely want to come to this one. There are even a few on the guest list who we are questioning whether or not they will show, but we'll see. Either way, it'll make for an interesting evening. Now, I know not everyone will show up at the same time and that's fine, but as long as I get to see everyone who matters and there is no drama, it will be great. I am sure many of you recall (having either seen it firsthand or heard it secondhand) last year's dramatic beginning: Crazy Rachel flipped out because Silas was there and screamed at me at Woody's. I am not even sure if Crazy Rachel is still in Lincoln, and either way she is not invited since I haven't spoken to her in months, so that won't be a problem. All the other crazies in my life have been phased out, thank goodness, so all we're left with are the nice normal fun friends who have been with me through thick and thin - no bail-ers allowed.

We're going to Sandy's first, because it's my favorite bar, though Woody's and Duffy's are right up there as well. The Spigot has become our final stop for some reason, I am not sure why. I love that place though and it's usually not as crowded, especially near last call, because it is farther down O Street and it's difficult for really drunk people to walk that far. One of the bartenders from The Spigot makes this really good drink called Salty Nuts, and it kind of looks like Pepto Bismol...which by the way is such a funny name and even funnier if you say it five times fast...but it is one of my favorite drinks. If you don't like milk or cream with your alcohol though, then this drink is not for you (TEETZ!) because there's a fair amount in it. Very good though, except only one of the guys knows how to make it and that makes me sad. Last time, when Teetz, Britt, Amanda and I went there, near last call we were just having the bartenders throw random shit together and we'd try it, there was one that was really good at first, but the after taste was seriously like one of those evergreen car ait fresheners. Yuck. All in all though, The Spigot bartenders are very adventurous and will come up with some crazy concoctions, just ask. And be hott too, that helps. I guess that's also why I like Duffy's a lot. Drake pointed out on Drunk Monday that Duffy's prides itself on it's mixed drinks, which is true, look at the sizes of them! (aside from the fishbowls of course, those are just huge anyway). But even the shots are huge, unlike Brothers, which is such a fucking joke. I hate that place, I refuse to go there at all. It's a huge frat party, and I am definitely over going to those - though Rugby house, Blue Heaven, and 33rd and Orchard provided many great memories for my underage drinking career.

I have to work at five, boooo. But Steve is MOD tonight, so I am hoping that he will be in the best mood possible (meaning he doesn't have to deal with stupid people or questions) and we will get out of there at 9:01. If Shaun is working, this probably won't happen, because he never knows when to stop once a customer is no longer interested. On Wednesday night he was talking to some guy for over an hour, and the guy still left ten minutes after we'd closed, having purchased NOTHING. Ugh, it is horrible working with some people, so I am bossy to them and they leave me alone and don't ask me stupid questions because they are scared. It works out nicely.

I am still looking forward to moving out of this stupid apartment in April, but a good amount of the tension existing prior to last week is slowly fading away. It helps that Bryan and I are speaking again, something we haven't done for about five months now. He and I are very up and down, we will get mad and be annoyed at each other for a few months/weeks/days whatever, then out of the blue start being nice to each other again until the next things happens. Maybe this time things will stay on the up-and-up a little longer because I enjoy my big comfy bed and like sleeping in it, as opposed to sleeping on my futon in Cather. We have to sleep on that because the mattress on the Cather bed hurts Drake's back - unfortunately the futon hurts my back, so usually I end up sleeping there and Drake gets the bumpy futon to himself. I think it also helps that I don't have to be awake so fucking early anymore, pretty much I don't have to get up before noon (except on Tuesdays, when I will have to wake up at seven for work) so noise doesn't bother me anymore because I am not trying to go to sleep with all the stupid video game racket. That's not to say others in this apartment don't have to get up earlier than me, but one inconsiderate favor deserves another. Invest in earplugs. Not my problem anymore.

And thanks JohnRoss for the wedding dance info. That's a lot of partner changing, from the parents and the kids dancing to the wedding party and blah blah. Luckily, (and unlucky in some sense) my bridal party is a bit smaller than I first thought it would be. I originally intended to have a maid of honor and then five bridesmaids, but of course crazy people don't belong in my wedding (and since we're not friends anymore it makes sense she wouldn't be involved, but we already covered that in my birthday talk, so moving on...) so that has contributed to the smaller number of bridesmaids. Plus, it won't be as expensive having a small wedding party, because that includes cost of transportation, gifts, food, etc. I don't even know why I am talking about this, it's not going to happen for at least another year and a half, but I am a girl and this has pretty much been planned out since I was about five years old. Think: Monica, on 'Friends', except I am not quite up to her level of craziness. I will probably trip and fall much like she did the morning she woke up and came running out of her room shouting "I'm getting married today!" but I am not nearly as neurotic as she is. Still, I have my people and my colors and the fun stuff picked out. Now I just need to find the money to pay for it! I was reading either Glamour or Cosmo the other day and they did a few articles on weddings and this one couple spent $400,000 on theirs! That's crazy! The girl was like, I'm an only child and a daddy's girl, so he went all out. Well, I too am an only-child and a grandpa's girl through and through, but never in a million years would I expect anyone in my family to fork over $400,000 for MY wedding. Yes, financial help would be greatly appreciated, but there is no way I would ever feel right about taking that amount of money and spending it on myself (well, and Drake too since it would be his wedding too) unless it was money I earned myself. Also in which case, if it was money I earned myself, at least half of it would be spent at Louis Vuitton. I MUST have this one trunk I found, it is absolutely gorgeous. Then of course I would have to spend the other half on a vacation just so I could use the trunk, but anyway...

Yes, now off to shower and slowly but surely start getting ready for work. Only a few more hours and we'll be able to party hard! In the immortal words of Sherry Moon as Baby Firefly in "House of 1000 Corpses" (and also Silas and Adam, since) "We like to get fucked up and do fucked up shit!" Okay, maybe not exactly, but we're going to drink and laugh and play pool and foosball and have fun and relax. I love my friends.

Hours til my bar birthday: 7 hours and 49 minutes!!!!!